MAIL COMMENT: Make school sport the Games’ golden legacy

They're off. Last night, one billion people worldwide watched the official opening ceremony of what promises to be a truly momentous London 2012 Olympics.

Today, an estimated one million British spectators will line the streets to watch Team GB’s cyclists – led by Mark Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins – hopefully claim the first of our many gold medals in a road race which will finish against the magnificent backdrop of the Mall and Buckingham Palace.

And this evening, Hannah Miley, a 22-year-old trained by her father since the age of three, could then strike gold herself in the pool.

Stunning: The spectacular London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony seen from above last night

If that happens, it is not fanciful to predict there will be a huge renaissance among Britain’s children in cycling, swimming and other sports which, as we shall argue later, could well be the greatest legacy of the 2012 Games.

Meanwhile, a huge number of foreign dignitaries, industrialists and senior business leaders are being welcomed by a buffed-up, energetic, diverse London which surely, with forgivable hubris, can be described as the world’s greatest city.

Of course, there have been the inevitable controversies in the first days of action.

What a pity that a small minority of Scottish and Welsh athletes, while prepared to play under the banner of Team GB, have so sourly refused to sing the national anthem – cheap, parochial point-scoring that is the very antithesis of the Olympic spirit.

But such pettiness does not detract from the awesome achievements of chief organiser Lord Coe and his team in creating the Games on budget and on time.

Yes, the bills will have to be paid later – and, make no mistake, many who lose their jobs in the austerity cuts over the next few years will curse the event. For now, however, let’s enjoy the party.

But, while the stunning new stadiums and swimming pool may well be an asset to this country long after the competitors have returned home (though the tumbleweed-strewn aftermath of the Greek Olympics in 2004 does not augur well) this paper believes there is an enduring legacy the Games can provide.

This evening, Hannah Miley, a 22-year-old trained by her father since the age of three, could then strike gold herself in the pool

By harnessing the spirit of the athletes themselves, Britain has a golden opportunity to reverse years of decline in school sports, with many comprehensives now providing scant facilities. (How significant it is that such a high percentage of Britain’s Olympians went to fee-paying schools).

Combined with this demise in facilities – and both main political parties are to blame for disastrously selling off playing fields over the decades – has been the death of a sporting culture in our schools.

Too many have been indoctrinated by that insidious 1960s philosophy that everyone must be a winner in competitive games and no one can be seen to lose.

The Olympics are a glorious refutation of this crazy ideology.

The benefits of playing competitive sport in school are enormous: they teach discipline and teamwork and help to reduce the chances of a child becoming obese.

In deprived areas, it can give boys, many from impoverished immigrant backgrounds, the male role models absent from their lives and the focus they need to prevent them from falling into criminality.

Over the next two weeks, Britain’s Olympians, who have shown ruthless self-discipline and dedication to their sport, will strain every sinew to win gold.

Our teachers and politicians must not waste the chance to ensure this ethic is drilled into our children, millions of whom will be glued to the Games on television.

To raise the sporting aspirations and competitive spirit of millions of young Britons. Now that’s a legacy of which the London Olympics could be truly proud.